The African Great Lakes nation of Tanzania dates formally from 1964, when it was formed out of the union of the much larger mainland territory of Tanganyika and the coastal archipelago of Zanzibar. The former was a colony and part of German East Africa from the 1880s to 1919’s when, under the League of Nations, it became a British mandate. It served as a British military outpost during World War II, providing financial help, munitions, and soldiers. In 1947, Tanganyika became a United Nations Trust Territory under British administration, a status it kept until its independence in 1961. The island of Zanzibar thrived as a trading hub, successively controlled by the Portuguese, the Sultanate of Oman, and then as a British protectorate by the end of the nineteenth century.
The King's African Rifles (KAR) was a multi-battalion British colonial regiment raised from British possessions in East Africa from 1902 until independence in the 1960s. It performed military and internal security functions within the colonial territories and served outside these territories during the world wars. The rank and file (askaris) were drawn from native inhabitants, while most of the officers were seconded from the British Army. When the KAR was first raised there were some Sudanese officers in the battalions raised in Uganda and native officers were commissioned towards the end of British colonial rule.
Julius Kambarage Nyerere was a Tanzanian anti-colonial activist, politician, and political theorist. He governed Tanganyika as prime minister from 1961 to 1962 and then as president from 1962 to 1964, after which he led its successor state, Tanzania, as president from 1964 to 1985. He was a founding member and chair of the Tanganyika African National Union (TANU) party, and of its successor Chama Cha Mapinduzi, from 1954 to 1990. Ideologically an African nationalist and African socialist, he promoted a political philosophy known as Ujamaa.
The Tanzania People’s Defence Force (TPDF) is the military force of the United Republic of Tanzania. It was established in September 1964, following a mutiny by the former colonial military force, the Tanganyika Rifles. From its inception, it was ingrained in the troops of the new TPDF that they were a people's force under civilian control. Unlike some of its neighbouring countries, Tanzania has never suffered a coup d'état or civil war.
The Zanzibar Revolution occurred in January 1964 and led to the overthrow of the Sultan of Zanzibar and his mainly Arab government by the island's majority Black African population.
The Anglican Church of Tanzania is a province of the Anglican Communion based in Dodoma. It consists of 28 dioceses headed by their respective bishops. It seceded from the Province of East Africa in 1970, which it shared with Kenya. The current primate and archbishop is Maimbo Mndolwa, enthroned on 20 May 2018.
Godfrey Mwakikagile is a prominent Tanzanian scholar and author specialising in African studies. He was also a news reporter for The Standard — the oldest and largest English newspaper in Tanzania and one of the three largest in East Africa.
Paul Lazaro Bomani was a Tanzanian politician and ambassador to the United States and Mexico.
Oscar Salathiel Kambona (1925-1997) was the first Minister of Foreign Affairs of Tanganyika from 1963 to 1966.
Tanganyika was a colonial territory in East Africa which was administered by the United Kingdom in various guises from 1916 to 1961. It was initially administered under a military occupation regime. From 20 July 1922, it was formalised into a League of Nations mandate under British rule. From 1946, it was administered by the UK as a United Nations trust territory.
East Africa Command was a Command of the British Army. Until 1947 it was under the direct control of the Army Council and thereafter it became the responsibility of Middle East Command. It was disbanded on 11 December 1963, the day before Kenya became independent, and replaced by British Land Forces Kenya, tasked with withdrawing all remaining British troops. All remaining troops left by December 1964 and British Land Forces Kenya was disestablished.
1st Kenya Rifles is an infantry battalion of the Kenya Army. It is a descendant of the pre-independence Kenya British Army formation the Kings African Rifles that was formed before the First World War.
Elizabeth II was Queen of Tanganyika from 1961 to 1962, when Tanganyika was an independent sovereign state and a constitutional monarchy. She was also the monarch of other sovereign states, including the United Kingdom. Her constitutional roles in Tanganyika were mostly delegated to the governor-general of Tanganyika.
John Mwakangale was one of the main leaders in the struggle for independence in Tanganyika during British colonial rule. When the country gained independence, Mwakangale joined the first cabinet of Julius Nyerere, the first President of Tanzania as Minister of Labour. Mwakangale is also regarded as a Pan-Africanist and a staunch African nationalist. He was also the first leader whom Nelson Mandela met in 1962 when he escaped from prison seeking assistance from other African leaders. Mandela gave a detail account about that encounter in his book Long Walk to Freedom.
Mainland Tanzania refers to the part of Tanzania on the continent of Africa; excluding the islands of Zanzibar. It corresponds with the area of the former country of Tanganyika.
David Bugozi Musuguri is a Tanzanian soldier and retired military officer who served as Chief of the Tanzania People's Defence Force from 1980 until 1988.
John Butler Walden was a Tanzanian military officer. Born in British Tanganyika to a white father and black mother, he enlisted in the King's African Rifles in 1957 after finishing school. He eventually achieved the rank of sergeant and, following Tanganyika's independence, was transferred to the Tanganyika Rifles. In April 1963 he became a lieutenant. He was later promoted to major and held command of a camp in Mafinga. During the Uganda–Tanzania War of 1978 and 1979 Walden served as commander of the 207th Brigade in the Tanzania People's Defence Force with the rank of brigadier. In 1981 he organised the withdrawal of the Tanzanian troops in Uganda. By 1987 he had been promoted to major general and two years later he oversaw an anti-poaching operation. He died in 2002.
Silas Paul Mayunga was a Tanzanian military officer and diplomat.
The Uganda Army, also known as the Uganda Rifles, served as the national armed forces of Uganda during the presidencies of Mutesa II and Milton Obote. As time went on, the military was gradually expanded and increasingly interfered in Uganda's national politics. It played a prominent role in defeating local insurgencies, suppressing opposition to Obote, and intervened in conflicts in the Congo as well as Sudan. Dissatisfied soldiers overthrew Obote in 1971, resulting in the establishment of the Second Republic of Uganda under the dictatorship of army commander Idi Amin. The Uganda Army was purged, with thousands of suspected pro-Obote troops killed or fleeing the country. The military was consequently split into an army serving under Amin – the Uganda Army (1971–1980) – and exiled rebel factions. The latter helped to overthrow Amin's regime during the Uganda–Tanzania War of 1978–79, and became the core of the Uganda National Liberation Army which would serve as Uganda's national military from 1980 to 1986.
Lugalo Military Camp is a large installation of the Tanzania People's Defence Force located in the city of Dar es Salaam along the Bagamoyo Road.